Lithuania is now becoming one of the most crypto-friendly and attractive jurisdictions within the European Union, offering a friendly and regulated legal environment for virtual asset service provider (VASP) companies, with clear regulations in place since January 2020.

In comparison to its neighbouring destination Estonia, Lithuanian regulations can be viewed as more flexible in terms of the setup and come at lower on-going cost as there is no specific requirement for onsite personnel. Our extensive experience both in Estonia and Lithuania can be at your disposal if you like to work with professionals.

Our team of experts provide professional solutions for crypto exchange and wallet licenses setup. The company and license setup can be fully processed remotely, with no travel required.

Simplicity
Minimum procedural requirements and bureaucratic burden of the process. The result will be only the company entry into the Register, without the need to obtain supporting documents and other attributes of bureaucracy.

Low costs
You only need to pay for the company registration, the authorized capital, as well as preparation and submission of documents.

Taxes
Corporate tax of 15% is one of the lowest rates in the EU.

Local Resident members
No requirements for the residence of the company director and shareholders.

Company’s director (CEO) Citizenship
It is not mandatory for a company’s director (CEO) to have Lithuanian citizenship.

Hiring Local Staff
No requirements for hiring local staff.

Interview with Lithuanian authorities
A company’s KYC/AML officers do not need to go through any type of interview with Lithuanian authorities to get assessed if theirs qualification / experience is suitable for respective company. It is a company’s CEO who shall seek that KYC/AML officers and other employees hold sufficient experience.

Terms
From 3 weeks.

Local Resident members
No requirements for the residence of the company director and shareholders.

Company’s director (CEO) Citizenship
It is not mandatory for a company’s director (CEO) to have Lithuanian citizenship.

Remote registration format
There is an opportunity to register a Lithuanian company remotely.

Cryptocurrency exchange license
A company with such a license is able to exchange digital currency for FIAT or vice versa, or cryptocurrency for another cryptocurrency, receiving a commission for the services provided.

Crypto wallet and custodian services license
A company with such a license may operate customer wallet to store cryptocurrency including generating and storing encrypted client keys.

A company can hold any or both the crypto exchange and wallet licenses. Both licenses granted are controlled by the Lithuanian Financial Crime Investigation Service (FCIS).

Whichever the license you will be interested in, our Business Development Team will help and guide you applying for any of such licenses – Cryptocurrency exchange license and/or Crypto wallet and custodian services license.

Companies in this cryptocurrency sector are subject to the several requirements, such as:

– To apply for a cryptocurrency license, a limited liability company (UAB) must be incorporated in Lithuania to provide both cryptocurrency exchange and/or storage services;
– The minimum requirement for a company’s authorised capital, from November 2022, is €125.000 – but, it is important to know that the new Lithuanian legislation allows registering a crypto company without an authorized capital contribution in any amount at any time, despite the requirement of 125,000 EUR;
– The establishment of a cryptocurrency company can be carried out either in person or remotely by proxy without the need to visit Lithuania;
– At least one owner (natural or legal person);
– One board member (may also be the owner);
– Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) – From November 2022 requirement for local resident position with employment contract; 1 position per Lithuanian Crypto company; professional experience and fit-and-proper requirement;
– Virtual office address accepted as company location. Beneficial owners’ details are disclosed to the authorities;
– All clients must undergo a background check and identification procedure;
– Customer data must be kept for eventual submission to its Regulator;
– The company ought to have internal control and risk assessment procedures;
– Reporting to Financial Crimes Investigation Service – the Regulator;

Currently, a UAB is one of the most frequently used and most popular type of business entity in Lithuania.

All over the licensing process, the FCIS has the right to request additional information and detailed description of the proposed activity of the crypto currency company.

Crypto license is usually issued only after all required information has been considered sufficient and all requirements have been met.

Any eventual change on the cryptocurrency company structure, after license has been issued, such as address, ownership, board members, beneficiaries, AML officers and others, require respective filing of changes in the local Registrar.

Services provided and accounts paid in virtual currencies are subject to normal VAT rules.
Virtual currency exchange services are not subject to VAT.
The cryptocurrency company’s profits are taxed at a rate of 15%. A micro company with less than ten employees and less than 300,000 euros of gross annual income may be taxed at a reduced corporate tax rate of 0-5%.
Income tax (WHT) 15% is levied on distributed profits (dividends paid).

– UAB company formation or purchase of a shelf/readymade company for application purposes – it usually takes around 5 business days;
– Prepare a notarized power of attorney in case of remote company registration in Lithuania;
– Register in the Tax Office;
– Taking care of all information and documents for application purposes – approx. up to 7 business days;
– Submit an application to the AML bureau for the company entry in the register;
– The application for license issuance will be processed by FCIS within 20 working days from the date application has been submitted.

Atrium Legal Lab is ready to provide you excellent solutions for crypto exchange and wallet licenses, inclusive the possibility to process crypto license application remotely, with no physical presence required in Lithuania.
Our Business Development Team will take care of all legal procedures on your behalf.
For more information or detailed offer specific to your own project, please contact us.

– Valid copy of passports of company officers;
– Power of attorney – should you decide to go for a remote application;
– Company detailed activity description;
– Curriculum Vitae showing business experience and professional expertise of all officers directly engaged on the crypto related project;
– Website address where cryptocurrency services will be offered;
– Criminal records (not older than 3 months) for owners, board members, final beneficiaries (UBO) and AML officers of the company;
– If required by FCIS, data of all ultimate beneficial owners (UBO);
– An AML officer is absolutely required; this AML officer for the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing must show professional experience and an excellent reputation (Lithuanian residence is not compulsory) – according to AML/KYC rules, each licensed company must keep a detailed and up-to-date overview of all customers and transaction;
– Consent of all directors;
– Confirmation of opening a bank account in Lithuania;
– Additional information may be requested by government agencies during registration.

One of our Customer Representatives will be most pleased to help and assist you